Physical Layer – Functionality and
Responsibilities
•Bit Transmission:
•Transmits raw bitstream (0s and 1s) over the physical medium (e.g., cables, fiber optics, radio waves).
•No interpretation of data — just transmission.
•Physical Topology:
•Defines the layout of devices (nodes) and cables (links) in the network (e.g., bus, star, ring).
•Data Rate Control:
•Determines data transmission speed (bit rate) over the medium.
•Signal Encoding and Modulation:
•Converts digital data into signals suitable for the transmission medium (e.g., electrical, optical, or radio
signals).
•Transmission Medium:
•Supports various media like twisted pair cable, coaxial cable, fiber optics, and wireless.
•Synchronization of Bits:
•Ensures that sender and receiver are synchronized at the bit level.
•Interface Specifications:
•Defines mechanical, electrical, and procedural characteristics for connecting devices (e.g., connectors,
voltage levels).
•Mechanical Physical form and structure (RJ45 connector shape and pin layout)
•Electrical Voltage, current, and signal characteristics (RS-232 signaling voltage levels)
•Procedural Rules and timing of communication Handshake protocols (RTS/CTS)(ACK/NAK), USB plug-in procedure
•Line Configuration:
•Supports point-to-point or multipoint connections.
•Transmission Modes:
•Controls simplex, half-duplex, or full-duplex communication modes.
Data Link Layer – Functionality and
Responsibilities
•Framing:
• Divides the data received from the network layer into manageable frames for transmission.
• Adds headers and trailers to define frame boundaries.
•Error Detection and Correction:
• Adds error-detecting codes (e.g., CRC, checksums) to identify transmission errors.
• May include error correction techniques (e.g., Hamming Code).
•Flow Control:
• Regulates the rate of data transmission between sender and receiver to prevent buffer overflow.
•MAC (Media Access Control):
• Controls how devices access the physical medium (especially in shared networks).
• Ensures collision detection and avoidance (e.g., CSMA/CD, CSMA/CA).
•Addressing:
• Uses MAC addresses (hardware addresses) to identify source and destination devices on the
same network.
•Acknowledgments and Retransmissions:
• Sends ACKs for received frames and retransmits lost or damaged frames.
•Link Establishment and Termination:
• Handles initial setup, maintenance, and termination of logical links between devices.
Network Layer – Functionality and
Responsibilities
1.Routing:
1. Determines the best path for data packets to travel from source to destination across interconnected
networks.
2. Uses routing algorithms and routing tables.
2.Logical Addressing:
1. Assigns IP addresses to identify devices uniquely across different networks.
2. Adds source and destination IP addresses to each packet.
3.Packet Forwarding:
1. Sends packets from one network to another using routers.
2. Handles hop-by-hop delivery.
4.Fragmentation and Reassembly:
1. Breaks large packets into smaller pieces (fragments) if the underlying network can’t handle large packets.
2. Reassembles them at the receiving end.
5.Error Handling and Diagnostics:
1. Provides mechanisms for packet delivery failure notifications.
2. Example: ICMP (Internet Control Message Protocol) for error reporting (e.g., destination unreachable).
6.Congestion Control (limited in OSI):
1. Attempts to reduce network congestion by managing traffic flow.
Transport Layer – Functionality and
Responsibilities
1.Segmentation and Reassembly:
1. Breaks large data from the session or application layer into smaller segments for transmission.
2. Reassembles them at the destination in the correct order.
2.End-to-End Communication:
1. Manages the logical connection between sender and receiver.
2. Ensures that data is delivered from the source application to the destination application.
3.Reliable Data Transfer:
1. Ensures error-free delivery, proper sequencing, and data integrity.
2. Achieved using acknowledgments (ACKs), sequence numbers, and retransmissions.
4.Flow Control:
1. Prevents the sender from overwhelming the receiver by adjusting the rate of data transmission.
2. Uses mechanisms like sliding window protocol.
5.Error Detection and Correction:
1. Uses checksums and other methods to detect errors in the segment.
2. Requests retransmission if an error is detected.
6.Connection Establishment and Termination:
1. Supports both connection-oriented (e.g., TCP) and connectionless (e.g., UDP) communications.
2. In TCP, it manages the 3-way handshake for connection setup and graceful connection termination.
7.Multiplexing and Demultiplexing:
1. Uses port numbers to allow multiple applications to use the network simultaneously.
2. Directs incoming data to the correct application.
Session Layer – Functionality and
Responsibilities
•Session Establishment, Maintenance, and Termination:
• Establishes communication sessions between applications.
• Maintains the session during data transfer.
• Terminates the session once the communication ends.
•Dialog Control (Two-way Communication):
• Manages dialog modes: simplex, half-duplex, or full-duplex.
• Controls who can transmit and when in a conversation (turn-taking).
•Synchronization:
• Adds checkpoints or sync points in data streams to recover from failures.
• For example, in a long file transfer, if a crash occurs, it can resume from the last checkpoint.
•Session Recovery and Restart:
• In case of interruptions, the session layer can recover the session without re-establishing everything
from scratch.
•Session Security and Authentication (optional):
• Can assist in user authentication and permission control (if integrated with application).
Presentation Layer – Functionality and
Responsibilities
•Data Translation:
• Converts data from application format into a common format for transmission, and vice versa.
• Example: Translates between different character sets like ASCII, EBCDIC, Unicode.
•Data Encryption and Decryption:
• Provides data security by encrypting data before transmission and decrypting it on arrival.
• Ensures confidentiality during transmission over the network.
•Data Compression and Decompression:
• Reduces the size of data to improve transmission speed and efficiency.
• Decompresses data at the receiving end to restore the original format.
•Syntax and Semantics Management:
• Ensures that the syntax (structure) and semantics (meaning) of the data are preserved across different
systems.
Application Layer – Functionality and
Responsibilities
1.Network Services to Applications:
•Provides access to network resources and services for end-user applications.
•Examples: web access, file transfer, email, remote login.
2.User Interface Support:
•Supports the user interface and facilitates interaction between the user and the application.
3.Resource Sharing and Remote Access:
•Enables sharing of files, printers, databases, etc., over the network.
•Allows remote access to data or services.
4.Protocol Support:
•Uses application layer protocols to enable communication between applications on different
hosts.
•Ensures proper formatting, message handling, and delivery.
5.Data Integrity and Formatting (for user interaction):
•Ensures that data sent to and from the application is correctly formatted and usable.
6.Authentication and Authorization (optional):
•Manages login credentials and access rights in some network services.
